National Nurses United

Connor_JulAug 2/9/12 5:07 PM Page 13 In addition to serving as an Occupy medic, Connor also brought his family to attend Occupy Oakland marches because he wanted to be part of a group that was publicly and peacefully calling for change. He was as shocked as the rest of the nation when, at a rally on Oct. 25, 2011, riot police in Oakland used tear gas, "non-lethal" projectiles, and flash-bang grenades to disperse the crowd. At the rally, an Iraq veteran, Scott Olson, 24, was injured when he was struck by a police projectile that fractured his skull. Olson's injury and the police aggression sparked discussion, debate, and concern across the nation. "I was there. My family was there. I would never have taken them if I thought there would be violence," Connor said. "My wife and I and our children were on the march from the library, and there were families, grandmothers, and union members from different unions, and it was a peaceful march. Then the police started throwing flash-bang grenades and teargas." A t home a month after his arrest, Connor plays with Jimmy, 3, and Violet, 2, in their Walnut Creek home. Karen is in the kitchen preparing breakfast. "Cheese," she said, "THE OCCUPY COMMUNITY IS AS DIVERSE opening the refrigerator. "Violet loves cheese." AS AMERICA IS, BECAUSE WE DON'T TURN Violet confirms this minutes later as she stuffs cubes of cheddar into her mouth as her mother drops them onto the tray of her high ANYONE AWAY. Anyone who's for changing chair. In the other room, Jimmy is singing to Elmo. the system is allowed in the discussion. We're It is a picturesque scene, noisy, warm, and pleasant. not censoring anyone. We're not having a PR Like all parents, one of Connor's main goals in life is to create a firm run it. It's organic, and that's why it might better future and world for his children. He believes that the Occupy look a little bit messy to people on the outside, movement and what it represents is the best hope now for winning but to me it's inspiration." the systemic changes and deep shifts in public opinion that must happen if the United States is going to rebuild the kind of society that lifts up working people and not just the wealthiest 1 percent. Occupy, Connor and his wife, an LVN, took shifts at the first aid tent. at its core, is not about who can set up tents where, but about the Attending Occupy's evening meetings in Oscar Grant Plaza outside right of ordinary people to living-wage jobs, healthcare, good public of Oakland's city hall, Connor was impressed with the movement's education, a clean environment, decent housing, and the like. democratic process. "Everyone had a right to speak. It was democraFor Connor, the financial transaction tax (FTT) on Wall Street cy in action," he said. proposed by NNU provides hope and answers for the 99 percent. Soon he was volunteering as a medic at Occupy marches and ral"The financial transaction tax goes right to the heart of where the lies. He was impressed with how the Occupy movement organized problem began, which is out-of-control speculative trading," said the medical teams and how inventive the team was at overcoming Connor. "That's what brought us down. [The financial transaction obstacles. tax] is basically saying, 'You need to pay for some of the institutions At one march, city ambulances were unable to get through to the that you've destroyed.' This is where NNU and Occupy Wall Street march location. come together." "[Occupy] had medics. They had a dispatcher. They had a feed Despite his passion for the Occupy movement, Connor recogwhere they can call for a response, and they had people with SUVs nizes that it can be intimidating because it is somewhat chaotic, conthat had been gutted so you can get someone out," Connor says. stantly morphing and changing into something else. He and others It was that kind of on-the-spot thinking and can-do creativity that resonated with Connor, who believes nurses have to be similarly involved in Occupy expect it to re-emerge in spring, perhaps in a new form, one that more forcefully and actively calls for a tax on creative. "In the military we say we 'adjust fire'; we move with what's Wall Street. Connor supports the change. Ever the nurse, he is going on," said Connor. assessing, adapting to circumstances, "adjusting fire." Occupy's message also resonated with him. The movement's He encourages nurses everywhere to get involved in Occupy, he said. focus on the plight of people victimized by the failed economy and Wall Street speculation made sense to Connor and was confirmed by "The Occupy community is as diverse as America is, because we don't turn anyone away. Anyone who's for changhis observations of the war in ing the system is allowed in the discussion," Iraq and of his community. Watch a video profile of Doug Connor, RN explainsaid Connor. "We're not censoring anyone. "There are certain institutions ing why he supports the Occupy movement at: We're not having a PR firm run it. It's that are profiting during this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziQ8CubCf4I organic, and that's why it might look a little time of economic misery, and bit messy to people on the outside, but to me it's inspiration." that's not right," Connor said. He believes it's a message that nurses, who see the uninsured, underinsured, sick, and elderly every day, understand. Erin FitzGerald is NNU's videographer and a National Nurse contributing writer. DECEMBER 2011 W W W. N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G N AT I O N A L N U R S E 13

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